Bangalore Examples - Chandavarker and Thacker
Not exactly a "point" so much as an example of a piece of Architecture, but this Rubix Commercial Complex in Bangalore, from 2007 I found fascinating, in that you can tell a rubix cube inspired the shape and twisting of the form (as well as some of the colour combinations) but they have altered the shape in a way that though it is still recognizable in essense as a cube, it still passes as a a unique piece of architecture, informed by something unexpected yet creating a tangible result that questions the pre-conceived notions of how to lay out a building.
City as Project - Marina Lathouri
"To raise the question of typology in architecture, is to raise a question of the architectural work itself" - Rafael Moneo.
I include this quote, not only because it is a powerful quote in relation to the perception of typology in architecture, but also because Rafael Moneo is the architect behind my precedent building, the Murcia Town Hall.
Typology is intended to link the form of the building with the purpose, but rather than merely relating symbolic purposes, this would be shown through the "formal and functional context" of the Architectural work itself.
Counterpoint - David Grahame Shane
An interesting point was made that considered urbanism as the source of hierarchy, in particular, a social hierarchy for building typologies. An example is given by having a "Priest's Temple" on top of this supposed social hierachy, at least in times past.
Also emphasized the emergance of "Urban actors" (for example, industrialists) which was mentioned in an article we were given previously. I would think that in the case of this design brief, we ourselves are the actors who influence the inner workings of the studio.
Environmental Intensifiers
I was quite intrigued at the technique of "form-finding" in order to generate forms, as it seemed to echo the Rubix Complex mentioned above as well having the possibility to create new, hitherto unknown shapes through unexpected manipulations. Taking form away from the generic geometric shapes and into something entirely different. It departs from the traditional design process and appears to be more scientific in it's approach.
My personal favourite:
"Individual Lounge Landscape System" utilizing glass-fibre skin.
Building as Interface - Walter Aprile and Stefano Mirti
I was very interested in the approach mentioned here, that rather than having a certain hierarchy in design, where the designer/architect rules over the rest, they imagine a horizontal circle in which all players can contribute and discuss, as this is interdisciplinary dialogue is seen as the most important and difficult thing o achieve. This is what I hope to achieve in an extent in my studio design, where by having a range of different skills in a like-minded environment, this think-tank studio will have the opportunity to create new and exciting ideas.
The Mix House - Joel Sanders and Karen Van Lengen
The take on this house, that the ambient noise that is in our background constantly (which we generally choose to ignore) can instead be the highlight of an architectural study, has created a very interesting effect that challenged not just the most obvious of our senses that we design for (sight in this case) but challenged other sense (sound) in a very intersting manner.
After BitTorrent: Darknets to Native Data - Anthony Burke
- Design as an act of negotiation - negotiation between factors such as contextual, internal and material forces are what will determine the "ultimate expression"
An idea of the internet as a "communal space" for design, as ideas can be shared (optimum ideal) this is reinforced through the mention of BitTorrent, a file sharing program, as a sort of metaphor for sharing ideas in Architecture, highlighting the powerful effect of combining intellect.
The quote that I found most profound within the text is located near the end:
"As a generation of users executing a mastery over media we
expect to engage with a two-way interactivity completely
unlike unidirectional traditional media and architecture,
where assembly and organisation create meaning,
forecasting the transformation of the figure of the architect
necessarily along the lines of the negotiator. Design becomes
the ability to activate patterns and relationships and to
construct intelligent tools. "
Old Dispersions and Scenes for the Production of Public Space - Bruno de Meulder
A juxtaposition of open spaces that link the private and public sector, an "archipelago" of cities that mutates, the idea that urban structure are almost piled on each other "wave after wave" creating the city in this way.
There are "pre-existing" factors in these cities that direct the mutation due to urbanization.
Public Lifestyle in the Low Density City - Alex Wall
Before, I hadn't really considered shopping centres in their functional capacity. By reading this article I see that it is true that they serve as a sort of community pin in the middle of a low-density city. In my own suburb for instance, it seems to be the hot-bed (so to speak) of activity, or possibly even the centre. By utilizing this effect that shopping centres have, other forms and functions of architecture can perhaps be added, to improve/change the low-density cities as we see them today, perhaps no longer so reliant on private cars as a method of transport? Thus decreasing levels of pollution (an optimum result, in any cast.)
CONTINUUM: A Self Engineering Creature Culture - Pia Edne-Brown
The idea that people, tools/knowledge etc need to relate to each other in a "malleable" way.
It mentions the idea of gathering, and specifically the gathering of intelligence (similar to the idea I hoped to achieve with my think-tank studio) and that this intelligence can be defined (at least, in the opinion of this article) as being gained through practice.
Type, Field, Culture, Praxis - Peter Carl
Contemporary Theory of Typology in Architecture is separated into four categories:
1. 18th Century
2. Early Modernist "Functionalism"
3. The reaction to this, as seen in the 1960s and 1970s.
4. Digital design techniques.
The typology is what allows us to categorize from the flux of creation, and then re-insert in order to allow for manipulation. The supposed tension between what is conceptualized and what is "real" is where we vary the typologies.
Intermittent Cities, On Waiting Spaces and How to Inhabit Transforming Cities - Claudia Faraone and Andrea Sarti
The interesting way in which they have chosen to map the city, showing "Waiting Space" as opposed to the usual items you would expect to see on a map.
Modular, or changeable architecture, where flexible devices will allow "various spacial configurations to host different users" - This particular point appealed to me, as it is reminiscent of the topographical floor design that I have been developing so far.
Urbanism without Density - Rafi Segal and Els Verbakel
(The importance of public space in determining the layout and urban design within larger cities)
An interesting point is made, that due to factors such as urban sprawl, our cities no longer have a defined shape. That is, they lack a boundary or border that is clear to see.
"Recent
studies of contemporary urbanities have suggested that
traditional definitions of public space are no longer accurate
to describe chance encounters, temporary spaces of gathering,
partially accessible meeting places, commercialised and
themed entertainment."
I would argue against this study, saying that any chance encounter in the city could be seen as taking place in public space, because in contrast to this.. If it isn't public space in which this event is occurring, it must then be in the only alternative offered to us, that is, private space. Thus we must assume two teenagers, for example, running into each other in an access way between houses, is not in fact a meeting in the public sphere, but rather the private. In this context, I would argue that these studies are flawed.
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